Xbox Marks the Spot

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When Andres Hernandez boarded a plane from Colombia to the United States at just seventeen years old, he carried little more than a dream—and his father’s quiet belief that engineering could open doors to a better future.

“Colombia was going through some rough times back then, and my dad said, ‘Hey, you should definitely go figure out if we can go somewhere else where you can have a better future,’” Hernandez explains. “Engineering for me has always been something that I love. My dad was an engineer, so I learned a lot from him.”

Landing first at a community college in Florida and living with an aunt who became like a second mother, Hernandez worked tirelessly to turn that dream into reality. Through the help from his family and through multiple scholarships, his drive pushed him to excel

Within a few years, Hernandez transferred to Georgia Tech, earning both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical and computer engineering.

“One of my professors said, ‘Hey, if you want to do a master’s, I’d love for you to work with me, and I’ll sponsor you,’” he explains. He ended up working as an assistant for that professor to fund his studies. “I did a few internships—Texas Instruments in semiconductors, Schlumberger in oil—and they were great, but they weren’t really touching something I wanted to do.”

That all changed when he visited Seattle and Microsoft in the summer of 2008

“Microsoft has this purpose of empowering everybody to achieve more and I saw how involved they were with the community, so I really loved everything about the company,” Hernandez recounts. “I reached out to recruiters and learned they were opening a brand-new program for Xbox called New College Hires.”

He then joined Microsoft as one of the first five new college graduates ever hired into Xbox Devices Engineering, a team previously reserved for industry experts with decades of experience. That experience not only accelerated his learning but positioned him to shape the future of gaming hardware.

Today, he serves as general manager and partner of Xbox Devices Engineering at Microsoft. Over nearly two decades, Hernandez has earned more than fifteen patents, led teams through product launches like the Xbox Series X amid the challenges of a global pandemic, and helped pioneer innovations such as xCloud—a technology that lets players stream games to virtually any device.

“That project felt like a little startup within Xbox,” he notes. “Some people didn’t like the idea at first, but several of us in the team pushed, and now it’s a growing market for us. Enabling everyone to play anywhere is in part becoming a reality because of the infrastructure we built.”

Along the way, Hernandez has become a champion for diversity and inclusion, quadrupling minority representation on his team.

“When I joined, the team wasn’t very diverse, and there was a lot of room for cultural improvement,” he shares. “I really wanted to become a leader and help change that. When you’re building for the world, you need people from the world. Our culture improves when you have diverse perspectives—not just for the people, but for our products.”

One great example of how this has helped is accessibility. Xbox has now developed adaptive accessories for gamers of all abilities. Hernandez believes that without people on the team who understood those needs, they wouldn’t have thought of them.

“My mom was an example of leading with empathy and compassion. These learnings have always stayed with me and has become a reason to give back to the community.”
Andres has worked with nonprofits like Code.org, Beyond the Ball, Girls Who Code, and LatinxMBA to expand STEM access for underrepresented communities.

“We’ve worked to introduce kids to computer science, especially those who might otherwise find it intimidating,” Hernandez explains. “We have recorded multiple videos teaching kids how to code; teachers are now using these in schools. And once a year our Xbox Devices team   mentors about fifty kids. Our team shows them the work we do teaches them about hardware, software, product development, and it lets them try hands-on activities.”

As Hernandez continues to innovate in his role at Microsoft, he’s also currently pursuing an executive MBA at MIT, wanting to expand his knowledge further into business and strategy.

“Balancing an executive MBA with work is challenging, to be honest. I’ve had to become very intentional with my time,” he says. “I spend weekends studying and have had to sacrifice some time with friends and family. My family and my team have been incredibly supportive. I try to bring what I learn in class back to the team. These include areas like business planning, strategy, leadership, and operations.”

Looking ahead, he would love to lead a full product and business.

“At MIT we’re studying entrepreneurship, and our team was selected to incubate a startup idea,” he says. “That lit a spark in me. So, after the MBA, I want to continue to grow and expand my product and business impact further”

Outside of work and school, Hernandez also channels his endurance athlete mindset into philanthropy. He’s a three-time Ironman finisher who competes and fundraises for multiple nonprofits, including Alzheimer’s research in honor of his father, who suffers from the condition.

“Triathlons, marathons, and endurance sports is what keeps my mind and body healthy,” he shares, adding that it is something he also enjoys doing with his wife while spending great time together.

Through it all, he’s showing the same grit and compassion that has guided his life since that first flight from Colombia.

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